Undersea Cable Protection Act of 2025 in plain language
1: Short title
This section gives the Act the short title "Undersea Cable Protection Act of 2025."
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1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Undersea Cable Protection Act of 2025 .
2: Prohibition on requiring authorizations for undersea fiber optic cables previously authorized by Federal or State agencies
This section would add a new section 310A to the National Marine Sanctuaries Act. Under the new section, despite any other part of that Act, the Secretary could not prohibit undersea fiber optic cables in a national marine sanctuary, and could not require any separate authorization for installing, keeping in place, operating, maintaining, repairing, or recovering those cables, if a Federal or State agency has already issued a license, lease, or permit authorizing that same activity. The new section would also let the Secretary direct the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to take part in interagency cooperation, under the Act's existing section 304(d) procedure, for any Federal agency action described in that section that involves the installation, continued presence, operation, maintenance, repair, or recovery of undersea fiber optic cables in a national marine sanctuary.
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2. Prohibition on requiring authorizations for undersea fiber optic cables previously authorized by Federal or State agencies The National Marine Sanctuaries Act ( 16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq. ) is amended by inserting after section 310 the following: 310A. Prohibition on requiring authorizations for undersea fiber optic cables previously authorized by Federal or State agencies (a) In general Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the Secretary may not prohibit or require any authorization for the installation, continued presence, operation, maintenance, repair, or recovery of undersea fiber optic cables in a national marine sanctuary if a license, lease, or permit has been issued by a Federal or State agency authorizing such installation, continued presence, operation, maintenance, repair, or recovery. (b) Interagency cooperation The Secretary may direct the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to engage in interagency cooperation under section 304(d) in any Federal agency action described in that section and involving the installation, continued presence, operation, maintenance, repair, or recovery of undersea fiber optic cables in a national marine sanctuary. .